


Like a Goodneighbor, Hancock is there

by PeacefulPhoenix



Category: Fallout 4
Genre: Drug Use, F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Idk I'm new, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, also bad at titles, does this count as fluff?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-02
Updated: 2016-01-02
Packaged: 2018-05-11 02:18:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,906
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5610199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PeacefulPhoenix/pseuds/PeacefulPhoenix
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sole Survivor, June, has a hard time and comes to Hancock for some drugs to takes her mind off things. Hancock makes sure she's safe.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Like a Goodneighbor, Hancock is there

When June opened the door to Hancock’s office in Goodneighbor she was greeted by a wall of smoke. She never had been a fan of smoking indoors but his bad smoking habits were hardly was she had on her mind right now. “Hey Hancock,” she said as she sat up straight next to him on the couch.

“If it isn’t my favorite vault dweller! How’s it going? Come to join in the fun?” he joked, shaking a jet cannister. 

“I have actually,” she replied, holding out her hand and earning herself a ‘huh’ from Hancock.

He gave her an odd look but shrugged and passed it over. “Not as good as Preston thinks you are all the time are you? Little Miss June here is being bad for once!” He chuckled and June rolled her eyes, only making him laugh harder. “Alright, alright. Back to business. You ever had Jet before?”

She nodded. “Yeah I take it sometimes if a fight looks like it’ll be too tough.” Jet slowed time for the user but no one else so Hancock wagered she’d look pretty damn good picking off raiders at super speed. Yeah, he definitely had a thing for girls that could hold their own in a fight.

“Well it’s a bit different when you want to get high. Try to relax - hard to do with such a handsome ghoul at your side I know but give it a go - take a few deep breaths, then breathe it in and don’t breath out until you’re back to normal speed.” Had Hancock not been somewhat buzzed himself maybe he would have noticed that her “deep” breaths were shallow and quick or that her knuckles were white where she gripped the arm of the couch. 

June tried to slow her breath but when she couldn’t she decided it really wouldn’t be that bad to just go for it and took a hit. The world slowed down immediately but her mind didn’t. The needs - the thoughts - were still there. Maybe if she just held her breath longer. But it was all she could focus on. This was supposed to make the thoughts go away!

Hancock’s eyes stayed on June’s as time slowed for her, a slight smile playing on his lips - well, what was left of them. He always loved watching someone’s eyes glaze over, especially pretty someones and boy was June pretty. But then they didn’t. They got wider - panicked. It took him a second longer to react than it should have but then he was shaking her. “You gotta breathe again. Come on, let it out.”

June jumped at the touch, eyes flying to Hancock’s hand on her shoulder then to his face. He was trying to say something but she couldn’t understand. He was speaking too slow. He looked upset. Was she doing something wrong? Did he know? Her thoughts raced through her head until a slap on her back winded her and brought her back to reality.

Hancock let out a sigh of his own and leaned back into the cushions, taking a drag on a cigarette knocking the ash into an ash tray. It took her a few seconds to get her breath back on track but then she looked over at him. “You were having a bad trip,” he explained. “Had to get you out of it somehow.”

June slumped into the couch too. “How come it didn’t work?” It had actually made everything worse! She scratched her arm absentmindedly leaving red tracks.

The ghoul shrugged. “Could be lots of things: bad chem, the fact that you usually take it before a fight, or the fact that your breath is quick now and probably was when you took it too.” The whole thing had sobered Hancock up pretty quick as needing to be responsible often did. Not to mention that he felt like hitting himself over the head for not noticing it earlier.

She hadn’t even noticed her breathing… She focused for a second, trying to stave off hyperventilation and slow it down. “Well is there something else I can take? Med-X maybe?”

Med-X wasn’t exactly a typical recreational chem but Hancock chose to not mention it and simply shook his head. She went to stand up so he put a hand on her shoulder and pushed her back down. “You’re staying right here until I know you’re okay.”

“Don’t treat me like a baby, Hancock!” She snapped. “I’m, like, 200 years older than you! I think I can take care of myself.” He started laughing which only made her grumpier.

“Man you just don’t stop, huh?” He chuckled a few more times before letting out a happy sigh. “June, pal, you started being my responsibility the moment you stepped through that door and asked for some chems. Besides, cryosleep doesn’t count as living. In this world, you are a baby.” He took another drag on his cigarette. “I’m not letting you take more because mixing chems is generally a bad idea for newbies - and no I don’t care if you’ve done it before it fights and shit. That’s different. Your adrenaline’s moving faster so they clear out quicker. The jet’s still in your system so I’m not gonna give you more. Besides, chems aint gonna fix whatever problems you’re having right now. Might take your mind off it for a while but problems have a way of coming back.”

He could see she was shaking so he put his arm around her and she leaned into his side. “I make it a policy not to ask why people want chems because everyone’s a little fucked up these days but you look like you need someone to listen right now.”

She didn’t answer so Hancock played with her hair which seemed to help relax her. At the very least she stopped shaking. Pressing the issue would only make things worse so he let her take her time but if she took much longer that lip she was chewing on was gonna start bleeding.

“Can you put out that cigarette?” she finally mumbled. 

“Oh shit, yeah you don’t like that do you?” He did so, letting out his last puff of smoke towards the window and away from her. He wondered why she had a thing against smoke inside. Seemed like they did it all the time pre-war. Maybe she had big lungs? Maybe that was another reason the whole Jet thing didn’t work out so well. 

June’s nails scratching her arm once again caught his eye so he chanced a glance. It was pretty red now and if he hadn’t known better he’d have expected to see track marks because he’d never seen someone scratch their skin or be so jumpy unless they were itching for a fix. Of course he would’ve something like that before and she wasn’t the type. She was too “good”.

Instead he saw dozens of thin, white lines - all fairly straight - littering her arms from elbow to wrist. He knew they were scars but he’d never seen any so… perfect. Okay maybe that wasn’t the best word for something that had obviously hurt. He ran a finger over them, noticing that some actually bumped out of the skin. When he felt June tense up against his arm he stopped. 

“What gave you these?” He glanced at her and found she was staring at her arm. He moved the hand still touching it back and kept his gaze averted. He definitely didn’t want her freaking out again. 

She took a deep breath - in then out. “I did.” She swallowed hard. “Before the war.”

Now Hancock couldn’t help but look up in shock. “What? Why would you do that?!” He realized his tone had gotten a bit raised when she shifted away from him so he coughed and tried again. “I mean, I’ve never heard of someone cutting themselves up.”

She nodded and sat up straighter, a slight shake returning to her hands and her eyes trained on her lap. She couldn’t stand to look at him; to see the disgust or disappointment. “Pre-war I was pretty depressed, especially in school. My parents wanted me to be perfect: perfect grades, perfect husband, perfect children, perfect house. I tried to do that. I really did. You should’ve seen their faces when I brought home Nate. They were so proud.” She stopped a second and Hancock had the sense to keep quite but put his hand on hers. 

“It wasn’t what I wanted. Don’t get me wrong, I loved Shaun and Nate but I wanted more than to be a housewife. I wanted to help people. Kinda ironic since I couldn’t even help myself.” She laughed but it was totally devoid of humor. That was definitely not a good sound from her Hancock decided. “I wanted to stop but I couldn’t. It felt way too good and it had become a habit.” She glanced at Hancock but couldn’t read his expression. Was that a smile? “What?”

“Oh nothing,” he chuckled. “It’s just that I don’t see you as the kind of person to take no for an answer and you most definitely are the kinda gal to get upset she can’t help people. This is what all this has been about, right?” She nodded and he chuckled a bit more. “You don’t gotta hide this kinda shit from me and you sure as hell don’t have to feel ashamed.” In fact, Hancock was pretty sure he was fucked as far as the not falling in love with her department went.

June’s ears and cheeks flushed pink and she scoffed. “Sure I don’t. Just shows how weak I am.” She sounded so small but she met Hancock’s gaze.

He was full on laughing now, hand on his stomach as his body shook. “You’re forgetting I took a chem knowing it would make me a ghoul just for a really good high and to piss of my brother. You’re not gonna get any shit from me for cutting for a high.” That made her smile and laugh a bit too. Good. She didn’t deserve to frown.

“Take a look at your arms.” She did. “You see any fresh marks?” She shook her head no. “That’s right. You’ve kicked this. The occasional urge doesn’t mean you haven’t or that you’ve relapsed. It means you’re recovering. It’s good.” She nodded, tears in her eyes. “Nuh uh. No crying. I’m not good with that shit.”

She took a second to breathe. “Thank you.” She tried to stand up but once again found herself being pulled back into the cushions. 

“I’m not done with you yet. You’re staying here until I think you’re okay.” She smiled and burrowed her way back under his arm and against his side. “And about that whole being perfect thing, how’re things with the Minutemen?”

She sighed a bit. “There’s always another base that needs something. Feels like I never have enough time but I’m the General so I have to, ya know?” He brushed some hair away from her eyes, chuckling slightly.

“As you just said, you’re the General. Just make some other minutemen do it. Hell, Garvey’s got plenty of time I’m sure. You don’t have to do everything. Try to do too much and it’ll be impossible to be perfect.” She nodded. “Still want that Med-X?”

She thought for a second. “No thanks. Maybe next time.”

“Maybe next time,” he agreed.

**Author's Note:**

> My first try at fanfic in a long time but I love this overprotective ghoul way too much. Constructive criticism is totally better cause I wanna write more and hopefully it will be good. I'm also trying to work on putting emotion in my writing so let me know what you think :)


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